IS THERE A “ROYAL REVOLUTION” BREWING IN THE WWE?
-by Travis Voeltz
Wrestlemania season—which traditionally has kicked off around the Royal Rumble—has typically been a time where the WWE showcases rivalries that potentially would be settled at Wrestlemania. With the Rumble winner going on to face their respective brand’s world champion, most of the focus then shifts to Wrestlemania’s main event. Along with that, hopefully the existence of a strong undercard, where various personal grudges are settled, will add to the show. While most have been wondering where the likes of their favorite stars will end up when Wrestlemania time rolls around, a currently unseen war may be brewing beneath the surface—one that could likely split the WWE as we know it.
Since becoming a widely-known superstar over the past 15 years, John Cena has found many opportunities outside the WWE. More and more, Cena has been spending time working on various television and movie projects. While he continues to devote a lot of time to the WWE, the newer superstars and even some of the fans, have begun assuming his WWE days are numbered. Despite his ever growing responsibilities in various outlets, Cena makes it a point to say he is a long way from being done with wrestling. While he claims he’s still the man to beat, some of the up and coming superstars have been itching to knock him off. While Cena has been vocal about this subject, there may be more at play than immediately recognized.
Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton, Dolph Ziggler, The Miz, Chris Jericho, The Big Show, Kane, Kofi Kingston and many others established themselves in the WWE prior to the New Era—which is what superstars have been calling the current age of the WWE. The aforementioned and still current stars on the roster were filling out the card, both before and during the WWE’s Reality and PG eras. With so many stars from past eras still operating within the New Era, along with younger, up-and-comers making a name for themselves, it may just be a matter of time before an all out war breaks between Reality or PG wrestlers and those of the New Era.
Whether or not New Era stars like Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Rusev, Enzo and Big Cass, Kevin Owens, Baron Corbin, American Alpha, Dean Ambrose and others feel this unrest—the likes of John Cena or Chris Jericho seem to almost be asking…baiting even…for this conflict to happen. Take your pick of Reigns, Rusev, or others—Jericho has been slamming, or “one-upping” the younger stars over social media at every turn. In addition, since Cena’s recent appearances on SNL and other television shows, he’s continually stating if anyone thinks they’re going to be the new guy on top—they will have to go through him. It seems only a matter of time until the New Era stars get tired of playing second fiddle to the veterans of the WWE and band together to take their place as WWE’s top dogs.
Then, pause to consider the outliers like AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Finn Balor, and Shinsuke Nakamura who certainly aren’t new to wrestling. While they may fit within the New Era they have been wrestling long enough that they could decide to side themselves with the Orton, Lesnar, Cena era. To complicate this possible war even more, they could enlist guys like Austin Aries, or Eric Young among others to form a 3rd fraction for themselves. WWE is full of guys that made their name in wrestling prior to coming there. Could they stand back and watch the other two factions destroy themselves…then be whose still standing when the dust settles?
If a war does break out, via either planned or spontaneous means—what would executive Triple H consider “best for business”? He could find himself having to decide between the era he “grew up” with, OR his NXT branded group, OR the New Era superstars as he definitely has a vested interest in the future of the company.
If things keep going the way they are going, we very well could see a wrestling confrontation, the likes of which we haven’t seen since the Attitude Era. Who will you side with if this goes down? Who will be left standing when the smoke clears? Could it be the established stars we’ve watched for years, the up and coming superstars, the outliers—or an entirely different turn of events that none could predict? What if those factions were so caught up in battling, that someone unexpected came along and obliterated them all? Stay tuned folks!
-Travis Voeltz
Twitter.com/TravisVoeltz